Devil May Cry: Legacy
by Lacewing
Summary: Dante is given a new job, this time as the protector of a girl called Ba'al who demons are chasing. Lots of Dante Attatude. This fiction does have some strong language, suggestive themes, and violence. Originaly titled DMC: Inferno, we liked Legacy better
1. Default Chapter

Written by Lacewing and Katerot

Based off of the Devil May Cry video game series, copyrighted to Capcom

Ba'al and all other original characters copyrighted to Lacewing and Katerot

Song lyrics by Lacewing, Katerot, and Voodoochile (and likely others)

Disclaimers: besides copyrights of various things (it's 'fan' fiction people! It wouldn't be 'fan' anything if I owned the characters!) This fiction does have some strong language, suggestive themes, and violence.

Enjoy!

* * *

Chapter 1

Sins of the Father,

Tears of the Mother.

Something within me,

Wishes to be free.

* * *

It was dark, no moon shined in the night sky, no stars, nothing, just a solid wall of cloud and mist which weighed heavily on the city. In a dark alleyway was a single neon sign, which lit the dingy street. The sign read "Devil May Cry" with a woman posed on it and looked remarkably like the welcome mat of a seedy night club.

However, _Devil May Cry_ was no night club, and the person approaching the entrance knew it. Walking calmly down the street was an elderly man. Wrapped in a jacket against the cold, he entered and waited while the single occupant of the room got off the phone. He looked around while he waited, studying the odd trophies that hung on the wall, the slightly abused pool table, the heavily abused set of drums off in another corner, and the young man with his feet on his dinged-up desk talking away like he hadn't a care in the world.

"Yea, so what? I told you I don't want the job- no, throwing more money at me isn't going to make this piss-ant thing anymore appealing." The blond hung up and then turned his attention to the old man dubiously. "You'd better be the pizza guy with my double layer pepperoni, hot sauce and extra cheese. They're already 20 minutes late."

The old man laughed, "I'm afraid my old age isn't the reason for the lateness of your dinner, no, I'm here on a very different errand. I'm looking for a man they call Dante, is it you?"

The young man made a soft sound as he sucked on his teeth and just stared back as if waiting for the rest.

The old man cleared his throat a little nervously as if thrown off his originally planned speech, "Your reputation precedes you demon hunter."

"And?"He cut in rudely. He had a feeling this guy would go over every single exploit,including a few he'd forgotten about, if he let him.

"And, I wish to hire you."

"Look buddy, Whatever you want it's likely not the kinds of jobs I take-"

"Hear me out, please. I only wish your services in protecting someone."

Dante raised one eyebrow and leaned forward. "I don't protect things, want me to kill a ghost, or demon or something like that and then I'm your man, but for 'protection' you're better off with-"

This time the old man cut him off, "There is more to it than just protecting someone. The person I wish for you to protect, there are demons after her. Demons who want the power that lies in her soul. You see, she is more than she appears and not human."

"She a demon?" Despite himself he was listening now.

"No, neither demon nor angel, she is of a race whose powers have been murmured ofthroughout history. Referred to as gods by some, tricksters by others, they have had many names, and many forms. Pieces of their powers have made there way into stories of many mythical beasts, beings, and heroes. They are creatures that can be good or evil. Near immortal they are pretty much impossible to kill."

"Okay, so Why do the demons want her? What I know about that sort of thing are just children's bedtime stories." Dante paused, half-remembering something he was once told as a child, he shook the feeling off and waited for the old man's reply.

"There is a ceremony that one can perform to take the power that these beings can offer freely. But in doing this, it will kill them. Really it's the only way one could kill them. The greed of demon-kind has caused the near extinction of these people. I believe the one that was thought of as the last of the race once helped your father. Likely it was that one's power Sparda used, and it was he who killed it. Keeping it from the demons that wished to take its power to add to their own. Power they themselves took from others like that one."

Dante blinked and absorbed the information, his father had taken the power of one of thecreatures that this old man was talking about? That would have to be put aside to think on later.

"Will you take this job? There really isn't much more time, they are likely attacking her as we speak."

Dante stood and took his sword down from the wall "You know, you could have talked faster, or less, if you wanted me out there really quick"

The old man only smiled and said no more as he waited for Dante to holster his guns and then lead the way, towards the direction of a _real_ seedy bar. It claimed live music and topless dancers, as well as the vocal talents of someone called "Babylon's Goddess"

The old man went to the back entrance and paused in the ally way. When Dante came upbehind him, he saw why. There, crumpled against a dirty brick wall, framed by smears of blood, hair dyed in wild array of colors, was a girl and all around her were demons, lesser demons, and all very dead.

Dante leaned over one and blinked, "Who did this?" He said aloud, mostly talking to himself. "These demons where killed with a single blow each."

The old man leaned in and plucked out a set of keys from the torso of one demon, it looked like the one that had landed the last blow on the girl, "I believe these did the deed." He said.

"Car keys?" Dante laughed, "You can't kill demons with keys!"

"No, you can't, she just turned them mortal, it was the fact she punched them through the chest with the keys after she turned them mortal that killed them."

Dante blinked and took a very long moment to absorb what the man said "She turned them _What_?"

"Mortal, that's what she does, demon hunter. She gives demons mortality. Makes them something closer to human if you will. It's really quite an ingenious defensive strategy."

"Load of help it was! She's dead!" Obviously this was his job, this woman who was already lying in a pool of her own blood. Well if she was so dangerous maybe that was a good thing.

"She's not, well, I mean she was, she's not now." The old man pointed out.

Dante leaned over the prone form. "That chick is missing half a lung! She looks pretty dead to-" He broke off with audible surprise when she suddenly arched up, legs braced, pushing herself half up the wall, eyes opened wide and staring and of the brightest silversheen imaginable. She crumpled back again, breathing, healed and very much alive.

"Well damn..." He muttered and turned to speak to the old man, and frowned at the empty ally way. His client was gone. "Shit." He muttered and, seeing no alternative, picked up the girl and took her back to his shop. Laying her on the couch he half-heartedly hoped the blood wouldn't stain the thing anymore than it already was.

"This sucks really, don't even know what that old guy plans on paying me." He shook his head and went to answer the door as someone else knocked. His pizza was there.

* * *

She opened her eyes to something unfamiliar. It was big and dark and it took her a long moment to figure out what it was. With a sudden shout she sprang up and fell over the arm of the couch she'd been laying on.

The demon's head didn't move, it was only a rather morbid trophy on the wall above the couch she had been lying on.

"You're awake, good, I was beginning to wonder if you ever would Sleeping Beauty." A voice startled her suddenly and she all but snapped her neck around to spot the man who the voice belonged to. The man in question approached her with a pizza box in one hand and a long red coat over one shoulder and was turned slightly away from her as he moved to drop the coat over the back of a chair.

She spun the rest of her body on her heel and lashed out with one foot out to knock his out from under him. Dante jumped back, hitting the wall as he barely avoided the move. She was fast! "Whoa babe! Calm down," He didn't know why he was bothering, he didn't even know how he was going to get paid and it seemed like this girl could take care of herself. In the middle of thinking all that he felt another strike land on him, she'd thrown something. Dropping the pizza box he hardly saw her move before she was right in his face, so close he could make out every crystalline facet of her green eyes. 'So they really weren't silver after all.' He thought absently before the pain hit him.

She drove his sword through his chest. Last he'd seen, the sword that had been on his desk was now digging into the wall behind him as the girl used her weight to give the blade the momentum to drive it deeper into the wall through him.

She backed up, and he could make out the bewildered look, as she cast her eyes about, as though she didn't know where she was or what to do next. Then in a loping, cat-like stride she ran out his front door and into the night.

Dante grunted as he moved forward a little and found himself stopped by the sword's hilt. She really did push that sword in good. But he could never be hurt by this sword, it was his father's, after all. Gripping the hilt firmly, he shoved his body forward to pull the blade out from the wall and then pulled it free of his body, there wasn't even a sign of hisblood on the blade to say he'd been impaled.

He looked at the tip of his sword, then he looked at the open doorway, into the rain that finally decided to fall from the dark clouds above and then to the box of pizza.

"I'm hungry dammit." He muttered and growled softly as he took off the now-ruined shirt. "I just got this thing dry-cleaned, shit. "He tossed it aside and, flopping onto his couch, he flipped the box lid open and began to eat.

* * *

Though the rain, towards home, she ran. She dodged traffic, and ran through back alleys as if she'd taken the route many times before. With half of her top missing, she'd wrappedher arms around herself, trying to keep warm even as she panted in exhaustion, eyes wide, like a frighten doe's. Finally, she reached a fire escape and, pulling it down, she crawled up it as nimbly as a monkey. At the top she banged her window in several spots, opened it, and crawled in. She closed it behind her and this time shoved a section of metal bar at the top to keep it from being opened the same way she had.

Stripping off what was left of her torn and bloody shirt she flung it as far from herself as she could, then stripping along the way, quickly made her way down a short hall where the decor on the wall wildly varied in a collage of musical instruments and weapons.

Once in the bathroom she crawled into the tub and turned on the shower. Hot watercascaded instantly down onto her shaking body. After a long while, finally the shock and pain kicked in and she rocked in the corner of her tub, taking deep gasping breaths like someone recovering from a near-drowning, as she tried to sort through the events in her mind. It felt as if something in her had died, but she didn't know what it was or how it had died. Slowly her small hiccupping sobs grew into full-throated wails, and beneath the shower-head, she cried until she couldn't cry anymore.

* * *

Dante stood outside the building that he'd finally tracked the girl down to. If he had known she would be this difficult to find he would have followed her earlier from when she first ran. Check that, he would have just said _'Screw it_', and returned to going about his own business. But since he was here; With a leap, he bounced off of the side of one building and managed to land on the fire escape without a sound. Taking the same route she had, he followed the path until he was stopped by something. Not that bar in her window, that wasn't a big deal, no, her home had a field around it.

Frowning, he studied it. He could feel the energy, he could even touch it, in a fashion. It was odd, almost like the demon aura fields he ran into, only this wasn't set to keep everything out, just demons. Odd, well, he wouldn't be getting in this way without making a lot of noise.

Tossing a set of keys in the air he grinned and caught them before hopping off the fire escape and landing in the alley below.

* * *

She sighed, having finally gotten her hysteria under control, just as someone pushed her shower curtain aside.

"You know you have a fine lunge but your repulse, tsk tsk tsk. "It's just pathetic." Dante gave her a cocky grin as he kept talking, oblivious to the look of lessening surprise, and growing anger and fear on the girl's face.

"You know, you shouldn't stab the guy that's just trying to help you. Shit, if you kill the good guys, I'd hate to see what you'd do to the little old lady you have to help cross the street. Key her to death, maybe?" He tossed her the keys then. She caught them, and looked back up at him.

He stepped back a little and turned, "Oh yeah, your security on this place? Not bad, it really was something to get through." He turned around again just in time to get hit, fully in the face, with a spray of hot water as the girl yanked the shower curtain off of it's bar and wrapped it around herself. She then shoved him and thanks to being half blinded with scalding water and slipping on a water-slicked tile floor, he landed on his back and spent some time contemplating the ceiling while he tried to get his breath back.

As he did, he found his vision clearing and felt the sharp point of a short sword pressedagainst his forehead.

The girl frowned down at him, still holding the curtain around herself. "Who the hell are you?"

He looked up the length of the blade, his vision finally coming back into perfect focus at the same time. He didn't immediately answer, but instead he grunted as he pulled himself up into a sitting position carefully so he wouldn't impale his head on any blade that glowed as fiercely as the one right in his face. "Someone who found you dead and brought you back to his place to rest and then gets stabbed through chest by you for his trouble." He said plainly, rubbing the back of his head where he'd cracked it on the floor. He looked up at her and noted she really wasn't that tall, even sitting on the floor, his head came nearly to her chest. She was a tiny, little thing who was shockingly fast. Likely the demons made the same mistake of underestimating her when they attacked her because of her height.

Pure numbers was the only thing that got to the girl. It was a credit to her abilities though that she took out the last demon before it had gotten her. He hoped his own death was half so poetic.

Her sword lowered slowly. "Name?" She asked.

"Dante."

She blinked, "Traveler classical literature. A comedy called _Dante's Inferno_, which is the first part. Also a common name during the Renaissance era."

"Know your history, good for you. What then should I call you besides "Lady"?"

"Ba'al"

"Babylonian god of storms and fertility. Only proves both our parents where demented in naming their kids."

She didn't answer, but stepped back a bit, so the sword tip wasn't right against Dante's forehead anymore. "You said I was dead? Not just passed out, right?"

"Deader than the Christmas ghosts." He confirmed.

She sank down to the ground, not quite letting go of her sword and not taking her eyes off him, but she looked like she was going to crumple to pieces.

Dante might have shown the girl some sympathy, but then that was out of the question considering she had impaled him with his own sword. That had just been plain embarrassing, and he wasn't one to quickly forgive being embarrassed. God forgive anyone who managed to actually get him to being emotional. He was a half-demon bounty hunter, he had a reputation to maintain after all.

"For someone as good as you, you sure fall to pieces quickly enough." He commented and ignored the sudden hardening of her eyes as her gaze snapped to him "I save you from certain death and this is the thanks I get? Some people are just ungrateful!" And with that,he turned to walk out of the bathroom.

And felt the impact of a cup to the back of his head with enough force to make him stumble forward. "OW! HEY!" He turned to see her standing in the doorway, her eyesglittered in the brightest shade of emerald he'd ever seen and so busy glaring she'd let her covering slip, he decided to ignore that punch line for a different one. "What's with you and household appliances?"

She slammed the door in his face and through the door he could hear her muttering andmoving around.

Smirking, he turned and wandered down the hall and into the living room. He glanced about, this wasn't anything like he expected really. Weapons and music took up a bulk of her decorations. The furniture was sparse and didn't match. She had a couple of worn couches that were still good but far past looking their best. There was an end table that served as a base for the TV to sit on, a game system near that and a couple of gamesbeside it. An old stereo that looked like she had cobbled together some make shift wiring to hook up the speakers was connected to the TV and beside that was a VCR and a half- dozen videos that likely came from a pawn shop. The coffee table was a little more interesting, mail, a few unpaid bills, and a couple magazines. She had a few photos on the walls, but they were nothing personal. Shots of buildings, various people that just happened to be in her shot, but nothing to show friends or family. Just showing she had another hobby besides hitting strangers with blunt objects.

A girl who was alone, with nothing to loose, and nothing she couldn't leave behind.

"Talk about a shut-in life." He muttered. Really though, from all appearances this girl wasperfectly capable of taking care of herself. Dante had no clue why he was here. Not like he even knew what his pay was. She had better protections on herself than he could ever provide. The only reason she got caught by those demons outside her employment was because that was the only place she wasn't protected, and she proved she could do very well with the minimal amount of weapons.

If there was one thing he disliked more than demons, it was having his time wasted.

She came into the room and looked at him as if she was going to ask what he was still doing there. Her hair was wet still from her bath, and most of the extra colors she put into it was gone, leaving only a reddish tint clinging to roots that were as white as his showed, an obvious dye job.

Just then they both froze as the feeling of demons surrounded the apartment from all angles reached them. "SHIT!" Dante shouted. "How'd the buggers sneak up on me?"

Ba'al sank to her knees, her entire form shaking. Dante blinked down at her, having already drawn his sword and given what he'd gone through with her already, had been expecting her to do the same, this wasn't in the plan at all.

"What's wrong with you?" He demanded.

He could feel the shielding pulse and dim.

"Too many, too many, I can't keep it up!" Ba'al ground out through her teeth.

"You tied those shields to yourself? Are you fuckin' crazy!"

She didn't answer, instead she passed out, and in that instant the field came down letting the hordes of hell, come right into the living room.

Dante darted to the girl and picked her up. It was just like fate decided to call his bluff and play with a full house at the same time to prove to him just how wrong his previous assessments of the situation where. He dodged the demons. Normally this would not be that big of a problem. After all he made a living killing these things and no matter how high powered they were he was stronger.

This time the girl was his priority. He couldn't carry her and fight this pack at the same time. Sword swinging just enough to clear a path, he pulled his jacket around his chargebundle and leapt out of the nearest window to land on the street below, in a shower of broken glass. Luckily, it didn't look like there were any pedestrians or cars around at thatmoment. The fewer people the better he always figured. Since more demons where coming down from the side streets he ran into the park ahead. The shrubs and statuary would give him a bit of cover to dodge in.

Which, of course, meant that something nasty would pop out of the one place he had to run to.

Pausing by a statue, he felt the earth shake, and the water in the fountain on the other side of him shook with the impact of something big.

"I'm in a Jurassic Park movie." He muttered to himself as he turned and found himself face to face with a very large lizard thing. Built like a dragon without wings, the beast rose up on hind legs and let out a deafening scream.

"Yo, Godzilla, I don't have time to play with you now, so how about we make an appointment. Next Friday sound good to you?"

Glancing to one side he could see the construction yard on the other side of the park, with the building that was scheduled to come down. Behind him was the gibbering demonhorde and before him the Godzilla beast.

Dante was in a really tight spot, "Think fate could cut me a little slack!" He yelled to the air, to which, fate being the bitch she was, would only make things worse for him forsaying that. After all, in the space of about three hours: he'd been stabbed by his own sword, knocked over several times by a slip of a girl who was hardly half his size and weight, found himself on his back with the same girl in the dominate position, and now he was running from the demon hordes and then Godzilla just jumps out of nowhere toattack him. He looked up at the lizard thing, then at the horde behind him.

"In a situation like this there is only one thing a guy can do."

Hitching the girl around his back he securely tied her there with the ends of his coat.

Then he ran.

Behind him the horde ran into the giant lizard and it gave him some badly needed time as he made his way for a construction yard near the park. While the demons sorted out their traffic jam, he was putting together a plan, it didn't have a snowflake's chance in hell of succeeding but tactical thinking had never been his strongest suit anyway. Fighting he was good at. Pull out the guns, swords, transform, save the day, go back to office, have a cup of coffee, maybe watch some Leno. No, this time he actually had to come up with a strategy. He was going to charge the old man double for this.

Daring a brief glance behind himself he checked to see how much of the horde were still behind him. And found that the smaller ones where having a time with the big monster. Who stomped and chomped everything in its path.

Good, fewer for him to deal with.

He slowed just enough to make sure the creatures saw him as he dove into the old building. Running up the stairs he made the best time he could as the demons swarmed the old building, using every claw-hold they could reach. Even Godzilla was trying to push it's way in through a truck entrance on the first floor.

Dante reached the floor he wanted and jumped out the nearest window, twisting in the air to grab the ledge and then hop down the side of the building while the demons hunted inside for him. Once at ground level he ran as fast as he could, before any of them noticedhe was out of the building, and dove behind the barricade. As he'd hoped, the building already wired to be destroyed and the detonation switch was there and looked connected.He prayed that it was.

"Send your boss my love!" He flipped off the demons in the building as he turned the switch.

For a brief moment there was nothing, he began to wonder if he screwed up big time. Suddenly, the first of the explosives went off and slowly the entire building began tocrumble to the ground. The demons inside were too slow to get out in time and werecrushed as the building fell.

He waited until the noise stopped, then slowly looked over the barricade for any left.

Only rubble remained.

With a cocky grin he stood up and patted the leg of the girl on his back. "Am I good or what?"

Just as he took his first step towards home, he heard a sound he did NOT like. Turning again he found the big lizard rising from the rubble and shaking it's body to shake off the rest. Slowly it started questing about with it's one remaining eye and its gaze landed on him.

"Fate, you are the biggest, meanest bitch alive." Dante pulled his guns out, it'd be a real trick to get his sword out with the girl over his back and all-, "It's always the big one that gets back up, why not the small, cute and cuddly one?"

The lizard charged at Dante, bearing it's teeth and screaming in his face. He paused for a moment to blink. "Breath mint! PLEASE!" He yelled at the lizard before pulling out his guns and firing at it, that at least gave him a chance to get back a little and get some air. He noticed that the creature was turning with him. He couldn't make any real dents with his guns on that thing's hide, but while it was keeping its good eye on him it was still staying high enough to be out of range.

As long as he kept moving, forcing it to move with him, it wasn't really attacking and that gave him precious moments to try and think up a creative way to kill this thing.

He managed to move just right so that one shot got off close to the thing's good eye and it tossed its head back in pain and annoyance. Dante used the distraction to spin off in the opposite direction. He didn't see the tail coming until it struck him in the midriff and sent him flying. He barely managed to turn so that he didn't land on his client. Coming to a stop on his face, he groaned as he stood and turned back to Godzilla.

"Damn, thing was smarter than it looked." He muttered, gasping for breath and wishing he could just drop the chick and go devil trigger on this thing's ass. As it was, he couldn't risk doing that, there might still a demon lurking about for him to be distracted and nab her.

He wondered yet again why he was even bothering.

When he rose he was in the lizard's direct line of sight again and it charged him. Dantethought for a moment and then ran right at it himself firing off his guns Ebony and Ivory in rapid succession.

The beast stopped short in it's charge, took a deep breath and fired off a huge fireball at him.

"SHIT!"Dante managed to jump to the side as the fireball shot past him, escaping withsinged his hair and the side of one sleeve. It managed to completely miss the girl on his back.

His eyes narrowed dangerously, as he studied his jacket. "Of course it can breathe fire, why not? Makes perfect sense." He complained to himself then had to run as the lizardtook a deep breath for another fireball. Dante then caught the smell of burned hair, one hand reached up to touch his silvery head, and his hand stopped short when he felt the slightly uneven patch that fairly ruined his haircut. This was now personal. "Don't mess with my looks 'Zilla! My reputation isn't the only thing that brings work to my door!"With that, he abandoned the idea of killing the lizard from a distance, and got close enough to the thing to fire directly into it's one good eye. It flung up it's head, screaming in pain and twisted around as if to strike at him with its tail.

This time Dante was ready. He grabbed the end of the lizard's tail and hung on, followingthe beast as it tried to shake him off and face him head on again. Dante noticed it couldn't even see him now. With a wild grin he managed to hop up onto the tail and then run up it's back. As he ran he charged power into his bullets and once he made it up to it's head he gave it a brief look of his grinning face before he fired with both guns into what was left of the thing's eye, planting lead slugs directly into its brain.

Screaming in agony the creature reared up and fell backwards trying, trying to crush him in the process of its final death throws. Dante leapt off of the creature and landed nimblyon the ground as it crashed onto the ground behind him. He turned and watched to make sure that the creature was really dead and stayed that way this time.

Slowly it's body crumbled into the dust it came from and meant it was gone for good. Dante allowed himself a brief sigh of relief. "All in a days work." He said and checked his passenger. She was fine, other than making a soft sound much like a whine when he shifted her from the makeshift sling on his back to a more comfortable carrying positionand he shook his head. "What kind of person can manage to sleep through that thing's bellowing? Let alone the earthquake! Its likely woken up the entire city!" He asked himself.

He headed back to his office muttering about his luck most the way.

Beta by Swifthawk


	2. chapter 2

notes: "trucker's solute" is basically a fancy way of saying that you flipped someone off. Same disclaimers as before.

* * *

Chapter 2

Tides rising

With spirits vast

The darkness creeps up

And takes away the daylight.

* * *

Ba'al woke slowly. Her head felt like it was splitting in two. It had seemed like a good idea, to expand those protection fields her mother taught her as a child to include her apartment. It worked in the past too, but this time, this time there had been more than her shields could handle and they backlashed on her something horrible.

She expected to be laying in pieces, or maybe dead and staring down at her body.

Not up at that absolutely horrendous bit of tasteless wall decoration that hung above Dante's couch.

That was the moment Dante walked into the room. He was dressed in just a half buttoned shirt and a pair of jeans. He had a beer in one hand and took a sip looking her over as she stared back and decided weather she was in heaven or hell.

"You're awake. So what are you going to do now chick? Stab me with your shoe and run off so that I have to save your ass from demons again?" he took a seat in the chair behind his desk and watched her as he drank his beer.

She sat up slowly deciding this was most definitely hell. Flipping him off she shook her head a bit to try and clear it "I never asked you to save me to start with, so why the hell did you? I'm afraid I don't think I'm your type." she noticed a picture of a shapely blond on the end of his desk, he was in it and looked like they where showing off something. The woman possessed a figure she'd only dreamed about.

He got up and walked around his desk sitting on the edge like he couldn't hold still in one spot for long "Don't worry, you aren't."

He suddenly grinned and it wasn't a nice one "After all, what with the stink motel you were at, likely that's the only reason you managed to survive this long. The demons had to fortify themselves before they could come after you."

"Oh well then I guess I must thank you, if the stench of this ... place.." she sniffed at his office with distaste "was what kept me safe for so long!"

"I doubt it lady, hell what was with those so called protections, connecting them to yourself? I've seen some amateurs do some really stupid things, but wow lady, you just set the bar higher for stupidity"

"Surprising comment considering your decor, what you didn't bring in anymore mangled corpses? Or am I the next trophy?" she shot back getting angry. She really did think she did the best she could with what she had available, and it had worked, worked well till now.

Though Dante had to admit, his initial reaction to her shields had been that they were good. In fact they were genius, but that she connected them to herself. He never even noticed she'd done it til the field had been overwhelmed. Much like her fighting skills. It took shear numbers to get her. But it also looked like it was going to remain huge numbers from here on out. And only he had the skills for those kinds of odds.

So he snorted instead "Well at least I don't get myself killed by my enemies." he smirked and folded his arms "Clearly its not surprising how you lived this long, killing people that are trying to help you. You'd snap the neck of some old lady just for the fun of it!"

"What's with you and old ladies? A fetish I should know about?"

"Maybe I do. 'Cause I'm looking at one right now. I mean common you're from a race that dies and gets back up, so legitimately I'm talking about a corpse not a hag!"

She blinked at him utterly confused and he watched her carefully for her reaction.

"What do you mean? I'm human." she finally said still looking rather floored by his insults.

He snorted "Oh that's rich. That's really rich." he watched her carefully to see if her confusion was real or just pretense.

Her bafflement was utterly real and finally as if in desperation she shot back at him "OH and what are you then? A Hippo in disguise? You must be, you already got the manners to match"

Dante pursed his lips a moment as if contemplating and answer. In the end he simply walked acrossed the room, sat down on the couch next to her and while she stared at him distrustfully he leaned back, turned and calmly pushed her off with his feet. Folding his arms behind his head as she stared at him dropped jawed he pointed with one finger over the edge of the armrest "Back there is a bedroom, get some sleep. And don't worry, this place actually has proper protections." and he went to sleep.

She blinked at him still floundering like a fish, just staring at him as if trying to figure out what was wrong with him.

After another moment she stood and dusted off her pants. She decided there was no real choice at the moment. She didn't know what was out there, and she already knew she could kick this guys ass if he decided to try anything.

So she went to the door in back of the office and peeked down the hall, dark, dirty, pizza boxes piled in a corner "You called my place dirty? At least I took out my garbage!" she said just loud enough that if he was shaming sleep he'd hear.

There was a sound like a strangled snore, loud enough to be unconvincing. Ba'al went down the hall, first bathroom, more bachelor's layout. Sure it was 'clean' but he never touched the corners. Typically male. The next, closest, by now she was wishing he was more pacific on which 'room' she was to sleep in. Finally she found the bedroom. At least the bed was made implying it was clean sheets. Hell looked more like he hadn't slept in it for ages. So she kicked off her single house slipper that she managed to keep and crawled under the blankets.

_Silk and satin.. nice..._ she fell asleep.

* * *

Morning came and Ba'al woke with a start. She was exhausted but it was rather hard to sleep with someone banging away on a set of drums with little real training but more than enough enthusiasm. Getting up she made her way back to the front room, the trophies that hung about the walls where still ugly as sin, but they weren't so scary in the daylight. Dante was shirtless and banging away on a set of drums to the beat of the stereo.

She covered her ears and glared at him and he only gave her a cocky and unrepentant grin to which she answered with the truckers solute. The song came to an end and he held his sticks and leaned over the farther scar drums crossing his arms and watching her "Hungry?" he asked.

"Starved," she wondered if he had any coffee.

He nodded his head at his desk where left over pizza sat and a couple beers next to it.

"That.. Is.. Not.. Breakfast"

"Well I don't cook chick."

"I'm NOT eating pizza and beer for breakfast!" turning she went back to the hall and hunted for the door to the kitchen. There was a second bedroom, and finally a small kitchen. Obviously someone knew how to cook, since it was stocked, even if half of it was going bad. Flinging the bad food into the trash she started a pot of coffee and found eggs and bacon. Not the really good breakfast she was use to, but better than cold pizza and warm beer.

Dante watched her muttering to himself about ingratitude, of course the first plate she finished he stole and was eating despite her sour looks, at least she kept the second plate for herself when he tried to grab it and she nailed a kitchen knife between the figures of his hand.

"HEY! What gives?"

"That is mine, if you want more make it yourself!" and she nabbed the plate.

"Well it's from my kitchen"

"Which you were letting go to waste!" she snapped back "Just look at all the wasted food. You better be good at your job cause that's a month's salary for most people!" and taking her cup of coffee she perched herself on a stool keeping a somewhat distrustful eye on the guy who seemed to be her self proclaimed guardian.

"What on earth possessed you to decide to protect me? I'm no one special"

He snorted like he agreed, but instead of starting another argument he pulled a cup down from a cupboard and got himself some coffee "I was hired by an old man."

"I don't know any old men"

"Maybe he was a regular at that bar you work at."

"It's a lesbians singles bar. I sing there."

"Well that explains why you're such a cold fish."

She only rolled her eyes "I just have better things to do with my time than cater to anyone's ego."

Dante remained silent, his mind went blank and be couldn't think of any good retorts for that one. The tight lipped smirk she gave him in return for his silence was annoyingly superior. He mentally gritted his teeth as she ate her breakfast in fast, neat, tiny bites that was on the verge of inhaling the food. He blinked a moment at her. He'd never seen anyone scarf down food so fast, and so neatly. Perched on the stool in capri pants and an oversized shirt that might have come from the men's department. She really needed some other clothing, he thought distractedly, something that made her look a little less like a gender confused teenager.

She finished and went to the sink with her plate and began washing up the dishes she dirtied while somehow managing to drink her coffee plus another cup in a few gulps. She washed the cup and turned back to him waiting as he sat there with his own plates watching her.

Standing he walked as if he hadn't a care in the world and practically dropped the stuff into the sink with enough noise to make the girl wince as he likely chipped the already abused flatware.

Then he left. He had to put his mind on more important things. Like what the hell the demons wanted with a girl that could turn them mortal. Sure the old man talked about power and that the mortal thing was a defensive strategy, but still there were things that just wasn't adding up. That overly organized attack on her apartment. The demons had all been of a lower class. Not known for being able to organize much of anything unless directed by someone stronger. Then there was Godzilla, he wasn't even sure WHAT that thing had been to start with or if it even had a name. He needed to know more. He needed to come up with a plan. Sure he might find going in with guns blazing and sword drawn the easiest tactic. After all, get rid of the problem and work your way to the source was always good fighting tactics. Once the source was gone then so was the problem.

Problem was he didn't know what the source was at the moment. Only the sketchy information that old man gave him. Ba'al was useless in this, she honestly knew nothing of what she was or why the demons wanted her.

He needed to find what he could so he could know the enemy.

What did that old man mean by saying that his father had killed one before? He was staring at a book page blankly his mind trying to put random bits of information together but still not coming up with a clear picture. What he knew of his father involved honor and protection of those against the demons.

Why would he kill something obviously so rare and pretty harmless really?

Nothing was making sense, he didn't have enough information to go on and he didn't know where he could find more. If Trish was here she'd likely pop up with something. Maybe some lore of Ba'al's kind or something. But his partner was currently involved in another job acrossed the country. One that Dante had no desire to take himself, but paid enough that Trish decided to take it to save the bank account. Lately the little jobs around the local area where pretty scarce and far between.

As if, know he realized, something had pulled everything out of the area to start with. Likely to mass up the attacks on Ba'al.

He looked up suddenly when he saw ba'al bustle into the main office armed it seemed with broom and dustpan. She started attacking his floors with a single minded determination that was actually kinda cute.

"What are you doing?" he demanded finding his good humor starting to return to him.

"CLEANING!" she stated and went diving over his sofa and coming up with a sock that looked like it been there a long long time. She wrinkled her nose and flung the stray peace of garment aside and went diving over again her backside in the air.

He tilted his head admiring the view. She might be an annoying runt, but she wasn't built like one. He chuckled softly.

"OH MY GOD!" and she finally just went to the side of his sofa and pushed. Revealing dirt and garbage that likely hadn't been touched since before Trish moved in with him.

Even Dante had to make a face at the pile in distaste as he watched the girl march off with more of that single minded determination and wonder what she was going to do, get a nuke?

She came back with a bag and a dustpan. Then she began shoveling the pile into the bag without care as to weather any of it was salvageable. Tying off the top of the bag she put it in a spot then began to pull out the other pull bags of garbage she'd collected from his place.

She'd been busy, he decided once he saw the rather impressive pile. Maybe he was getting something out of this arrangement after all. He didn't have to do it, and she sure complained a lot less than Trish would have when faced with this much garbage.

Suddenly she put her hands on her hips and gave him a look that warned horribly agonizing death if he tried anything "Garbage, out, now"

Dante only saluted like an obedient soldier, and took out the garbage without asking questions. One, he didn't what to know what she'd do in revenge if he gave her lip, and two, he wouldn't want her to run it out herself anyway. Once she left the office she would be vulnerable. His protections where not the best in the world, but they handled most things. Trish had said they should contract someone to set up something better, he just never got around to it.

As afternoon came, the place was cleaner than it likely had ever been since before he even moved in. Ba'al had even gotten the cobwebbing around the trophies. Which made them look a little too alive, so he had no plans of ever dusting up there again. He was thumbing through a few pages of a book that looked promising and watching her out of the corner of his eyes. She was staring fixedly at her toes waving them idly with her arms flung back over her head and over the back of the couch, which she was stretched out so that her butt hardly rested on the edge of the cushion. She looked about as bored as he felt. Only the light ticking of a clock could be heard in the silence of the building.

She spoke suddenly it startled him out of his blank contiplation of nothing at all, "Do you think anything survived at my apartment?"

He turned and looked at her for a long moment. She hadn't said anything to him at all since she ordered him to take out the garbage. True there was still laundry, but he didn't have anything to do it here and he wasn't about to let her go out just to wash his dirty clothing. Since it was all gathered, he'd just take it with him to the dry cleaners with the rest of his stuff.

After a moments brief contiplation of her question he shrugged going back to his book and scanning a few words, he didn't look up when he finally spoke "I'm sure everything is left at your apartment, but I wouldn't recommend going back there, who knows what would be found. Could be King Kong next."

She gave a long sigh and stared at the ceiling "I wonder if Lucky and Meimei are doing alright."

Now he looked up at her with a raised brow "Lucky and Meimei?"

"My bamboo and goldfish" she responded and managed not to sound sheepish "Lucky is a bit of that living bamboo, it was the only sprig to live out of an entire arrangement. Meimei's in an aquarium in my bedroom."

He thought about it a long moment then closing his book he set it down and got up from his seat "Wait here then, I'll go get them." he could likely pick her up some other clothing. That would save him time and cash really. While he hoped this wouldn't take long, there was no way he could lone her something she was too tiny, and too tiny to wear any of Trish's things either. She'd look like a child playing dress-up in her parents wardrobe. A funny image, but not one he needed assosiated with him. After all he had a reputation to maintain.

She blinked at him dumbfounded and he suddenly felt like grinning cockily but managed to stay somewhat serious as she blinked green eyes for a few moments, "um... thanks?" Ba'al didn't sound as if she was sure she should be thanking him or not. As if waiting for the catch.

He nodded shortly, with all seriousness "Not a problem, after all when living alone a person has to have something around, even if it's just a plant, or fish, or the roaches on the wall."

She screwed up her face comicly "eww"

"Hey! Why do you think I don't mind mine around?" he nodded at a fat one that came stuttering out of a corner as if trying to locate the trash Ba'al disposed off "That one's Rick, his dad's cool."

The look of horror she gave him nearly made him loose the serious expression he was fighting to keep. It said clearly without any words: 'You better be joking, and please oh please, let me crush it!'

He had to bite the inside of his cheek to keep from cracking up, "Now be careful! These roaches value family. Don't go stepping on them while I'm out." and he went outside and once there he peeked in the window briefly. Ba'al was seated on his sofa stiffed back with her knees pulled up really close as if terrified of touching the ground now. Staring wide eyed at the roach, which the cocky little thing was staring right back.

He managed to get at least around the corner before he howled in laughter startling a couple pedestrians.

* * *

Dante reached the apartment and went in the front. No one had been there since he made his escape with Ba'al the night before. The screams of demons must have kept the other people of the apartment building locked into their homes and no one even bothered trying to call for police.

They wouldn't have done any good, just added to the bloodbath.

He glanced around and quickly spotted the bamboo, it was in the kitchen next to the sink. Obviously to remind her to water the poor thing. There was a fern hanging in another corner, so try and very dead. The girl definitely had a black thumb. She said that this bit of bamboo was the only survivor of the arrangement, which was pretty sad. He didn't know anyone who could actually kill the stuff. It was a weed. He wondered how she was handling his teasing back at the office.

* * *

Ba'al squished another roach underfoot "Sorry Rick, but this is for my sanity." she scooped the dead body into a small bag, then stuffed the bag into a larger one with other bits of random things she managed to locate after her cleaning exodus. She found some unused roach traps and bait in a cupboard and stuffed them into little cracks she figured Dante would never notice.

Just in case he WAS serious about the roach thing...

* * *

Dante was shaking his head at the destruction. It looked like after he left a couple demons decided to have a party. The place was thoroughly trashed. TV broken in, couches shredded and turned upside-down, coffee table broken in half. That was just the livingroom. Most of her weapons were missing, so likely some of the demons took a liking to them and gave them new homes.

There was a growling sound and he ducked just as a blade swished where his head was and turning he saw a demon, monkey like this was one of the lowest of the low class demons. But it watched him with a very unusual glint of intelligence in its eyes.

"Sorry, I'm fresh out of bananas" he told the thing stepping back careful of the mess around him and put his hands to his guns.

The creature moved slightly to one side and he saw its eyes move in another direction.

Dante jumped just as the scythe fell where he had been. There were more of the blasted things! He found his back up against the wall for the moment but it gave him time to count just how many of hell's primates he was up against. Only four. So long as they all didn't act as smart as that first one he should be more than fine.

"Shouldn't you guys be like eating your own fecal matter?" he asked them conversationally.

Suddenly something brown and squishy hit his boot. He glanced down as the demon apes made sounds suspiciously like laughter.

Looking up at them dangerously he tilted his head slightly "Oh you little son of a bitch" and he ran at them guns forward. No one cuckolds one of his jokes. Especially not a little half formed ape of a demon.

The demons swung weapons at him and he kicked off ones face shooting ivory and ebony off at two others. When he came down from his flip on the one demon he gave a high kick and sent it flying back. One of the other two had managed to dodge most of his bullets but the other blew up in a cloud of dust. Of the remaining two one got in behind him while the other swung its weapon down to hit him with while the other had him pinned.

Thinking on his feet he dropped down into the splits as the one behind him was about to grab. It was then impaled by the weapon of the other one. He looked up at the thing's slowly growing look of shock and grinned as he put ivory into the things dropped jaw "Enjoy hell you little shit stain." and fired.

It blew to pieces. He noticed the one he flung to the corner starting to get up and without moving he fired off a few rounds filling it with holes till it too turned to dust.

Waiting for more demons who didn't show he finally relaxed and ever so slowly shifted his legs "Oh shit, holy mother of GOD!" he cursed half couching in on himself "That fuckin' HURT" he holstered his guns and managed to turn a sofa back upright to sit on his legs slightly spread to ease the strain "There is a reason girls are better at the splits than guys are" he muttered staring up at the ceiling and its bumpy cottage cheese texture. "Next time lets jump up rather than going down dumb ass" he continued to mutter to himself as he recovered from the fight. Taking the extra moment since it didn't look like anything more was going to attack.


	3. chapter 3

Notes: Thanks kindly for the reviews and to the dumb asses who decided to post flames,

Katerot and Lacy: laughing asses off Send us more! These are a riot!

Platinum Blond equals White/Silver hair. So.. DANTE'S BLOND! pulls out the blond jokes What do you get when you line 5 blonds up in a row? A WIND TUNNEL!

* * *

Chapter 3

Grey is the wind blowing

Acrossed the dim light

A lonely song is sung

No one is coming home

* * *

Dante walked into the office a duffel bag over one shoulder and a small 1 gallon aquarium under one arm, a ceramic container in the other hand. He noticed Ba'al on his couch with her feet up on the arm rest and reading what looked like an old book of demon hierarchy. He set the stuff down one at a time to make sure she looked his way, the moment she saw her belongings she was off the couch and over cooing at the fish in its tank.

He went through the duffel bag "You know" he started and his voice snapped Ba'als attention onto him "I have never quiet seen quite a collection of" his grin was pure mischief "Thongs, in my life" and he pulled out the one he was hunting for and stretched it slightly between his fingers, bright pink with a poke'mon decal on it.

"HEY!" she made a grab at her underwear, overturning her duffel a couple other garments falling out "Unhand pikachu!" she got it back and turned up her duffle to get a look at what else he grabbed. Mostly her working clothing. Stage stuff, which was tight, leather and uncomfortable as hell. As well as scanty.

"You're one to tease! Say another word and I will post those tiger striped speedos for the world to see. I bet the demons would LOVE to know what you wear under those tight pants."

He had picked up another thong that had fallen out, a small rhinestone heart on them with the words 'eat me' spelled out, he didn't hear her threat at first "Woah, a little after work en-" he broke off just as her words and threat sunk in "What a minute, how did you..?" then he remembered that she gathered the laundry. After all his stuff was everywhere at the moment because he didn't care where it ended up when he took it off, "HEY!" he finished lamely as she grinned like a cat in creme. He was honestly scared, the tiger ones where tame compared to some. Half of them gag gifts from friends in the past. But still if it was common knowledge he'd be ruined. Rather hard to fight when the ones you're fighting are laughing at you instead of cowering "Let's not be hasty here! How are the kids to pattern their lives after me if they knew that?"

She leaned forward slightly and snagged back her undies "You were saying earlier?"

"Um...I was.. Just saying about all the wonderful after work activities you do... like helping the sick at the hospital and those kids at the school and all." trying to be this polite and defeated was not something he was use to.

"Lame save Dante, but I'll let it slide" and she made sure everything was in her bag before shouldering it and heading to the bathroom. She thought it was the best place for it since that was where she was use to getting dressed at anyway, "Oh, I left cold cuts and stuff for sandwiches on the counter in the kitchen, I do hope you can make a sandwich?"

"Why bother when the pizza guy is on the speed dial?" he shot back and crashed into his chair ignoring her for the moment. Once she disappeared though he snuck into the kitchen and raided the platter of cut meats and cheeses readily enough, even he got tired of pizza and Chinese takeout. With food in hand he went back to his work.

* * *

Evening began to descend. Dante left his desk for a moment and while he was gone a bowl of stew and a cold beer found there way there. The girl taking a perch on the stool near his drums as she ate her own meal. She'd glanced at the books he had pulled out and was hunting through for clues. Not all of them in English but with pictures that were informative enough, even if one couldn't read it something could be made of it.

He came in and blinked at her a moment. After their chat earlier he hadn't seen anything of her all day. "By all means, pick up a book, you might learn something" he wondered what drove her back into his presence after avoiding him all afternoon.

She nodded at the food on his desk. She was trying to be nice, no matter how hard he made it. But with demons chasing her she wasn't going to work, let alone they likely thought she was dead anyway. Which was fine, she hated that job to start with. Only it had given her some interaction with people, now she had none and she missed it. It was getting towards time where she would be going to be in front of people and talk to fellow employees, and she just didn't want to be alone.

Especially when the sun finished going down and the demons came out in hordes looking for her.

"Women, always keep to themselves" Dante muttered under his breath to himself as he sat down and picked up the beer popping the cap and taking a drink. He watched her a moment while she ate and then went back to his books taking a bite or two of the stew, while keeping an eye on her and idly flipping pages of a book that was proving another dead end. She was useless as the books. She didn't know what she was, and he only knew what the old man told him. The bits of references he found were too wild to be believed, likely exaggerations of the truth. Then how much was true and how much the exaggeration? He mentally sighed again. She was still just sitting there. Watching him, it was getting annoying really. But then, if she didn't want to talk that was her choice. He was only her protector, not her best friend.

Considering her temper he'd be honestly shocked if she even had a best friend.

Turning a page he began to feel like he was stuck under x-ray vision. If something wasn't said soon he was going to go crazy. So he finally said something "What's on your mind?"

If she didn't say anything now, he was leaving the room, or throwing her out.

While he pretended disinterest she could see she had his attention. Slowly she shrugged and set her dishes aside pulling her knees up and hugging them to herself "I.. I just don't understand it, why me? I'm nothing special, I mean, I work at a lesbian topless singles bar for Christ sake! I can barely pay my rent, I'm nothing and have no one. WHY?" that last word was filled with even more questions. She was alone, she had no one and nothing, why was she picked out for this torture. "I mean, why were you hired? Why any of this?" she finally articulated the things that drove her to clean his home, that made her work to keep her mind off of her trashed home and destroyed life. Who would be interested in her enough to want to kill her?

Dante was silent a long moment. Finally he spoke, not moving and not really looking at her "You should consider yourself lucky" he said after that pause and she began to wonder if voicing her questions was even worth the waste of words, "Clearly someone cares for you." pale eyes looked up and trapped hers in an intense and serious stare. She had voiced the questions he himself had been asking since he met her "Someone cared enough to hire me as your protector" even if he still didn't know when he was getting paid, reaching into a pocket he came up with something and looked at it a moment before looking at her "You have another thing on your side" he flipped the coin and she caught it easily and looked curiously at the odd little silver coin with the lady on one side "You have luck with you." he said with a tight smile.

"You really shouldn't let things overwhelm you so much. The answers will come if you are patient enough."

"I don't feel very lucky" she responded softly still looking at the coin. Slowly she pulled up one knee and rested her cheek on it, her arm wrapped around the leg hugging it close to her tiny form. She turned the coin along the fingers of her other hand juggling it around in a motion he'd seen slight of hand, and stage magicians use to keep their fingers nimble.

He smirked feeling more comrade with this girl suddenly "Well I know how you feel. Most people who are being hunted down by a legion of demons -for God knows what purpose- (and will most likely conclude to be an event of UNSPEAKABLE horror and death) wouldn't feel too comfortable either."

She gave him a slight glaring look of 'you're not helping' before she finally spoke again, "Who's the lady?" she held up the coin "The same as the one in that photo?" she indicated one with Dante posed like a sportsman over the body of something large and ugly smirking at the camera while the blond was posed like one of the girls on 'The Price is Right'.

Dante smirked at the picture remembering when that was taken "No, that is the person who is my partner here at Devil May Cry. She's an interesting person, but a better warrior and friend." He glanced at Ba'al who was still watching him and his reactions, looking for all the world like a tiny lost waif "I asure you, she is NOT the lady in the logo."

"Oh... Then who is it, if I can ask?"

"Her name is Trish" he responded not really paying attention to the question fully "But I'm starting to get a bit worried about her." he frowned and seemed to be talking to herself "She's already taken longer with this job than she thought it would be."

Ba'al blinked a moment and decided he was still talking about the lady in the photo, and not the lady on the logo "Don't you have a way of reaching her? Like a cell phone or something?"

He snorted "Of course not! Trish can take care of herself. She's not a baby that I must hold her hand, she'd likely take it off if I tried!" he frowned deeper "Besides, she's more careful than I am on solo missions." he chuckled a little bit as if remembering something "She's fine, just late is all." He chuckled a little at his own silly thoughts and then looked at her "Where did you learn to fight? As well as erect barriers and such? Not the sort of thing you find in Cosmo."

She ignored the last jibe at her likely reading material "My mother taught me" she said shortly with a bit of finality to her voice then added still twirling the coin in her fingers "Fighting, I learned here and there. Watching people, a couple classes when I was younger, movies."

Dante chuckled at the last bit "Who says you can't learn anything good from TV?"

He'd gone back to looking at his book, while he was still paying full attention to her he felt he should still be getting something done. At least turn a couple more pages.

After a moment she shrugged "So who is this person anyway" she decided to try once more, holding the coin up. He'd been avoiding the question and she thought she'd try once more.

He didn't even look up "I told you, Trish my partner"

"You said that the lady in the photo and the lady in the logo are different people." she added beginning to wonder if he was being purposely obtuse.

Dante suddenly realized she wasn't pressing the issue with Trish, she was curious about the logo design. He was going to have to take a break, all this studying about demons was effecting his brain.

He was becoming as retarded as them.

The blond sighed, "She was my mother" he answered pushing back his bangs from his eyes though he wasn't looking at her now, but to the side, his tone was unusually soft. This obviously was a deep subject.

Ba'al didn't seem interested in delving deeply into his past, just mildly curious "Was she nice?" she was looking at the floor her hands stilled, her entire form listening and her words oddly wistful.

Dante wasn't comfortable talking about his mother at any level. Every time he killed another demon it was one more pass as getting back little pieces of the whole that was taken from him. He would never fill that aching loss, but in the end he could only do the very best he could, "Yes," he answered her question "She was, a very exceptional woman" his eyes took on an slightly far off cast, as if remembering something "A wonderful person." He didn't notice how his voice broke, but he could feel the overwhelming approach of strong emotions. If he didn't stop now then he would hate himself later for breaking down. What was it about this little slip of a girl who looked at him with green eyes and asked such childishly innocent questions that made him want to tell her everything and cry like a child?

He turned his chair suddenly towards the wall as he waited in silence for a long moment. Ba'al never moved, and never stopped her scrutiny of the floor, suddenly very silent in a way that was different but the same as his own. As if they both needed a moment to regain a bit of self control.

"Do you miss her?" Ba'al suddenly asked and he had to close his eyes and take a breath, silently counting to ten, then twenty, finishing on 30 before he could find the voice to answer.

"Yes, I miss her." he glanced to the side and noticed Ba'al hiding behind the bangs of her dyed hair. He himself felt like he was hiding behind the strains of white, "So. Do you miss your mother?"

Ba'al suddenly sat up stiffly and if he hadn't been watching her carefully he would not have noticed the flash of pain that crossed her features before her eyes turned to steal and she shook her head vehemently.

Standing she started out of the room and paused a brief moment "No" and she left the room likely to hide somewhere in back again.

"Idiot." he muttered to himself. While uncomfortable that was indeed the longest and most informative conversation he had yet to have with the girl.

Before he could decide if he wanted to follow and try to talk to her again, or just leave her alone for the time being something hit the front door with enough force to knock it in.

"What the?" he jumped up grabbing his sword and making for the downed entrance.

Where stood a tall skeletal like creature shroud in black. Weapon in hand it launched itself at him without preamble and was followed by a flood of the normally solitary creatures.

Dante blinked one brief moment completely taken aback by the attack. He had many things come at him suddenly, but never had he have so many such demons attack him at the front door of his own home!

"BA'AL! GET YOUR ASS HIDDEN!" He shouted over his shoulder, happy to note that Ba'al was nowhere in sight. Meaning the girl anticipated the need to run for it.

""Dammit. You demons have just unspeakable timing..." He smirked at the demons. "Can't you see you are killing the romance in here?" He took a single step to the side his mind turning and it wasn't all with strategy either. He needed time, and all the extra time he could get he would use.

"Alright. The way it looks you have two options. You can either bow down and apologize for barging in here and ruining my chance to score. Then proceed to go back and to sucking your master's dick, or" He just held up his sword which shimmer with electricity. "I can personally demonstrate why the electric chair has been outlawed in most states."

The demon shrieked and seemed more interested in finding out what the electric chair was like.

* * *

Ba'al kicked at a demon that was between her and her target hiding place. There where not many places to hide, especially on short notice. He felt her foot connect solidly with the creature's neck and heard a satisfying crunch as it broke. The same time she felt an odd tingling down her nerve ends. The demon corpse fell back against the ones behind it in the hall and there was a scuffle as the others tore the dead one to pieces to get it out of their way. She used that time to get herself into the bathroom where she closed the door and locked it. She didn't realize that the bodies she left where not disintegrating like the ones Dante killed. All she knew was she needed something to block the door better than a bit of wood. After all many of those things out there had very large and sharp weapons.

She noticed that the cabinet that held towels and extra toiletries was not attached to the wall. As fast as she could she heaved. Every moment was like a growing nightmare. Her stomach rolled and her skin tingled. She felt a growing dizziness and doubling of vision which was not helping the situation any.

She managed to get the cabinet out enough for her to shimmy behind it and use her legs to push against the wall and the tall bit of furniture squeaked acrossed the floor and blocked the door. She grabbed her duffel and slung it over her shoulder. Planning on escaping out the very narrow window. Too small for the creatures chasing her, but just right for herself.

Instead there was another demon trying to get through to reach her there as well.

She huddled down against the cabinet and pressed back to keep the creatures out as they drove their weapons through the door wood.

This was not going to hold them long and she was so dead.

If she didn't throw up first from the increased rolling in her stomach.

* * *

Dante slashed down another demon and put Ivory to work shooting out more. His frown was growing with every body. This was getting easier, and not just because he was getting into a rhythm. But because the demons where getting weaker.

They were all the same type, how could they be getting weaker? He tripped over a body that had not disappeared and with a curse kicked the cadaver with enough force to send it flying into a bunch of demons that thought to try and mob him while he was down.

"HEY! ARE YOU ALRIGHT BACK THERE?" he noticed more demons massing from the direction of the hall. They likely had came in through a window, or the backdoor. But Ba'al was back there. And there was no answer. Chopping down more demons and this time being more careful with the astoundingly growing numbers of them that were not disappearing he began to feel a touch of worry. This fight was getting ridiculous!

"Coming through!" he slashed at a bunch fighting to get back towards where Ba'al was last scene running when the attack first started. His priority was her dammit! And these little cockbites where getting in his way!

"HEY! Are you still alive? Talk to me back there!" he shouted over the mob which as he tried getting back towards Ba'al was only growing more relentless.

There was a sudden crash sound as if something large was knocked over and broken. Followed by a scream that sent chills down his spine.

"I have no more time to play with you faggots!" he shouted and powered up his sword doing a single blasting thunder strike to clear as many of the demons as he could. Then he started a rapid fire method with his two guns single mindedly clearing the path.

And noticing that the demons had changed tactics once again. They were running instead of fighting. The ones that stayed in line of his pistols were simply distraction.

He hated being out maneuvered! He reached the bathroom where hte splitters of door and cabinet showed the effort the creatures had to go to get in.

He knelt and looked at the scene before him for clues. Around was a massive amount of demon parts and dark near black blood, but against the far bathroom wall was a streak of very disturbingly red blood. Ba'al's. He cursed, and more so when he noticed that the demons had not only taken her, they took her duffel bag as well. She was killed to keep her easy to take, they knew she would revive, or they would have put greater effort into taking her alive.

Remembering how he first found her he knew now why the demons had turned into pansies and didn't disappear.

They were mortal.

Frustration made him scream and start firing at a body till nothing remained recognizable of it but a pile of dog-meat. He kicked another still wanting to beat himself for losing the client. He paused when the body dropped a medallion. Picking it up he looked at it closely and grinned. Only it was a frightening cheerful smile. All teeth like a sharks "So now we know where we are going." he said.

He now had something to work with.


	4. chapter 4

Notes: thanks to everyone who's commented. As for typos, there are likely to be a few running about. I try to catch them all, but I don't have all that much time and Katerot's a worse speller than me! LOL If you spot a typo tell me just right where it's located and I'll try and get it corrected. still putting up fixed versions

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Chapter 4

* * *

Ba'al woke on a couch, seemed to be a growing hobby of hers, how many couches she can wake up on. Only instead of ugly wall trophies staring down at her she found a rock gargoyle-like statuary.

She wasn't sure if it was an improvement.

"Awake?" she didn't reply to the voice only let her eyes scan the space till they landed on a man seated in a tall window acrossed from the lounger she was resting on. She slowly sat up ignoring him for the moment. Her head was splitting and she was fighting down huge gulfs of panic. Something inside her twisted and turned chaotically and she didn't know what to do with it. Her shirt was again ruined and bloody. She noticed her duffel bag so she was relieved to know she didn't have to run around in nothing.

She found a hand under her chin lifting her face and she gave a startled shout her foot lashing out. The man caught it and held her in place. "You really are quick, unfortunately you are only running on instinct at the moment. Like a small cornered animal, it hurt doesn't it? I can see that in your eyes, how much it hurts, coming back when you should be dead. Feeling like you aren't quite of this world anymore. It gets worse doesn't it? Each time it happens." he chuckled "Such delightful pain in your eyes, so expressive those eyes are little girl. Or are you, a little girl? How long have we missed you I wonder?"

Ba'al didn't bother trying to make sense of what he said. She didn't care. Her body screamed at her and itched in a way that was more inside than out. She longed to scratch at her skin till she ripped it off. Scream till the pain passed. Lash out at everything around her. She wanted escape, wanted to go home. To a place that felt familiar. The place with the ugly head on the wall she could somewhat recall.

She wasn't there and she didn't know what was happening.

She fell back from the man who still held her and started to scream, horrible wailing almost inhuman screams that ripped through her head.

The man watched on amused till suddenly the small hands he thought as nothing lashed out and dug into his throat. Gagging he pulled back trying to get the little hell beast to let go of him. Still she clung, the look in her pained confused eyes one of wishing to destroy anything, so long as it ended the pain in her own body.

With every ounce of strength in him he clawed her hands from his throat and managed to get some distance between him and this creature he now realized he knew nothing of. He watched her as she fumbled about, it was almost comedic if he didn't know first hand just how dangerous she was. She huddled down on herself curled over her knees and screaming, fingers pulling hanks of hair from her skull.

He backed up from this creature who suddenly noticed him again her eyes as silver as smelted metal and her face twisting into a mask, mostly pain and confusion, but she jumped at him.

He got out of the way which was what she wanted. She sailed past him and out the window. Darting after he reached out to try and grab the insane creature but too late. Arms held out from herself she fell down the long drop of the tower in the ancient ruins.

The man leaned against the ledge staring as he expected the figure to splatter herself on the ground and instead watched as she managed to twist cat-like and land, tucked into a ball, rolling to take as much momentum off the fall as she could before she crashed into large pillars raising dust and sand behind her.

"Maybe the tower wasn't the best place to keep her after all" he said to himself and turned to walk over to the duffel bag. She had gone through it and he noticed items missing. So she had enough sense to grab clothing. Picking up the bag he thought a long moment.

Before tossing it out the window she jumped from.

This would prove interesting after all. A very interesting game indeed.

But I will have you little goddess, he thought with amusement for the nickname when she sung on stage, a play off of the god she was named for.

An Uncle he believed, it was hard to say. Amusing how humans would worship anything in those old days. Ba'al had been keep secret since the massacre started, her family lines muddled. He ran a hand down the stonework that held the story of her people. The story he had hoped she would see before her end. It seemed poetic that way, to tell her everything, then sacrifice her for the power she held. Let her know why they were doing what they were doing, and what she will power exactly.

The end of the known world wasn't that large a thing after all. She would be the key. To open the locked gate in these ruins. To release all of demon kind onto the earth. She would become the key to the extinction of not just her race, but the human race as well.

Truly poetic.

* * *

Dante turned the medallion in his hands. The first of several actually. He hunted around the bodies, the ones that turned to dust and the ones left behind to gather flies. Nothing much besides the usual, but several had these medallions. Tokens of a place he'd never been to, but once he had the image he was able to locate where the demons had gotten them. Hunting through several dusty old books he wasn't even sure anyone had looked at for some time.

He didn't bother reading, not at first. Always his mind going back to how they slipped past him. DANTE, the surge of the demonic world, and they got past him. Teeth gritted his fist clenched and the ancient stone of one of the amulets shattered in his grip. It was a simple job! Just protect a girl named Ba'al and everything would be fine and dandy. But he failed his mission, and worst of all she still had his coin. He picked up another medallion from the small pile and shattered it as well. It still didn't make him feel any better. This was more than personal now. There was no way some stupid bitch assed demons where going to get the best of him!

He finally began to read and located the place on the old tokens easily enough, A'ashigesh, a ruins belonging to an extinct race. Dante thought that sounded more like Ba'al's people. After all, she was the only endangered being he knew of currently. Made sense in a weird way, take her to a place where her people died to kill her.

Made perfect sense.

He was so going to ruin their plans. He placed this medallion in his pocket and got up. Leaving everything as it was he went outside to get his motorbike. It was going to be a very long journey and unlike usual he was not given any transportation but his own.

Just more stuff to add to his already bruised pride. He was going make each and every one of them pay for touching her, that was for sure.

* * *

Ba'al looked into the still water. The first source she'd located in awhile. Carefully she leaned over it staring at herself. It was dark hard to make out the image but the white chunks of hair stood out against the darker mass like a sore thumb. She frowned, it wasn't like she could find a drug store and Clairol around here. She leaned her face down next to the water and took the tiniest sip, then spat it back out again. Stale. The water was no good to drink. With a sigh she washed her hands of stuff from demons and that man in the tower. She pulled the duffel bag closer to herself and hunted for something that wasn't torn and dirty from her last 'death' and once dressed sat next to the still water with her knees pulled up against her chest. She rather wished she had something a little less like a bra and more like a shirt, but then it was Dante who got her clothing. She sighed silently and rocked in place. This last time was worse, infinately worse, than the time before. It took longer for her to come back to herself. Each time it was like something in her twisted and changed. Something she swore should be more noticible on the outside. Maybe it was just her perspective, she wasn't sure.

Fishing her in pants pocket she came up with Dante's coin and stared at the lady on the face she gritted her teeth and told herself she'd kick her own ass if she cried. As it was she stared at the coin and took a slight breath "I don't feel very lucky right now Dante" she murmured to the coin. "I.. I'm going to die here." she sniffed wetly and rubbed her tired eyes.

She froze at a sound and then moved slowly inching around a large hybrid looking cross animal statue hiding from the group of demons, dog headed things vaguely resembling Anubis, the Jackal God of Egypt.

She would fight, if she would die she would take as many of them as she could with her.

* * *

Dante growled. She had just spent hours on various public transports. From airplanes to a bus where he had to sit on the sandwiched between an old man and his chickens who sang off key the entire ride, and a couple kids who spoke surprisingly good English and had more questions than he had answers for, or patients.

Now he was staring at the ruins he wanted after tramping through dense, wet, jungle. Rain still fell adding insult to injury on the demon hunter.

He kept telling himself it was for the money, and the pleasure of peeling whatever the old man didn't pay out of his hide, but the closer he got the more uneasy he felt. It was like something nagging at the back of his head, the feeling of being watched and followed but not able to find whoever it was that followed him. Facing the gate he looked up at two huge statues carved into the walls. The lower halves like cats seated regally and on guard, the upper half had a set of breasts that would look really good on a hooker, and faces of women with hair done up in some elaborate style. Bits of plaster paint till stuck to them in places showing they use to be colored and likely looked quite lifelike in their hay-day.

Eyes closed they both faced down at the path watching all who would pass under their aristocratly carved noses.

For some reason he hated them on sight.

Walking slow he thought about his battle plan, sure he knew there would be traps and ambuses and likely more demons than hell had right to claim running about. That wouldn't stop him though, he had a good plan. Get in, find Ba'al, kick whatever's ass is in his way and get out again. Simple and too the point. He nodded to himself and started walking with a fierce purpose. He looked around casually and smirked "No butler, no guide, no wonder this place is dead on tourists."

Then he stopped and stared up at one of the statues. The one on his right suddenly had eyes open and was staring down at him. The barest glow to the pearl like eyes watched him without blinking.

"What the..." he pulled his guns and locked them for firing, looked like getting in wasn't going to be as easy as he thought. The one he was looking at parted lips and showed rows of teeth as pear-like as the eyes, and likely sharp as they were pointed.

He was thrown forward as it was the one behind him that attacked, laughing uproariously as it swatted at him like a cat and he the new red ball. He rolled to the side and managed to come up shooting "Now what kind of welcome is that ladies? Don't like company much do you." and he opened fire.

The bullets had a hard time impacting on the stone surface before him. The two laughed and started to circle him like a pair of cats, each moving opposite of the other. So that to face one was to leave himself vulnerable from attack from behind. He had a feeling next time wasn't going to be quite so 'friendly' a swat. He pointed his guns, one behind one in front and proceeded to fire. The one he was facing ducked down under his shot. They might have been made of stone, but they moved like sand. Which was really a bitch. Just proved that the gods where sick bastards to think up these two. Behind him the other jumped over his bullets and dove at him. His roll and scramble for safety was not at all elegant or well timed. He scooted back on his butt just barely getting out of the way as a paw as wide as his hips shot down and slammed the ground before him.

He stared at the paw a long moment his mind completely blank for once of all retorts. Then he had to roll and crab-walk hastily away, from behind the one in front of him the other attacked. He managed to get into a better roll and roll to his feet rather than scooting about on his butt. While the two cat things got themselves organized again he quickly looked around and suddenly his grin was back in full force, "Here kitty kitty kitty" he taunted beckoning to the two feline like statues who both turned hate filled eyes onto him "I got some nice catnip right here!" and with that he turned and ran back towards the entrance.

With him running away both followed and couldn't use the same tactics of before of getting him looking at one and the other attacking. He had to be fast, he noticed that these two would attack from any direction they could get an opening at. So he couldn't let them get close enough for one to jump over him. He came to the wall and adding a burst of speed ran right up it. When the momentum was not enough to keep him going vertical he pushed from the wall and then pushed again seemingly right off the air. With a flip he pulled his guns just at the two cat things still traveling too fast to try and reach him hit the wall. They had been trying to slow and stop, but where so close to each other that they ended up only crashing into a pile of stone work and chaos. Dante had plans to fire at them when he had a clear shot, if not he would still fire anyway.

As soon as he was clear before his hit the ground behind the two creature who turned on each other and were squabbling he noticed why they kept their backs to him.

The rather large blue and green gems on their backsides made lovely targets. Tagging them both he opened fire on those gems. One turned as soon as the first shot came close to the sensitive gem and the other was a bit slower and got a butt full of lead. The stone cracking.

Dante smirked, yes, once again he would beat whatever hell threw his way, save the girl, and go home to the ring of the cheers grateful world in his ears. As he felt the impact of a small rock with his head that one of the cat things flung at him he mentally corrected himself, he'd get the ringing of something in his ears that is.

He ignored the small trickle of blood. Head wounds always bleed the worst. The screaming one charged at him. Howling rage and pain he took aim "Cat's whine to much" he informed it and with a slight crouch jumped into the air and then used the things face to make another jump putting him in perfect alignment with the cracked gem. Pulling his sword blue lightning crackled along the blade as he struck down and shattered the gem.

The cat statue screamed pain and crumbled to dust and rubble. He turned to the other one that was back a bit, some damage done from the impact with the wall to the pretty stone face, which was now snarling at him. He wiped the trickle of blood from the side of his face and gave the thing a cocky grin "I got one of you, so why don't you just lay down and take it like a bitch? Oh wait, oh wait, you're feline"

The thing only snarled more and slowly inched to the side in a low crouch. He inched with it. The taunt didn't work, this one was much smarter than the other. In fact he realized that the other had been the distraction, this one had done a majority of the attacking, "Looks like I have a challenge this time" he said softly and then hastily scrambled back a few steps as the thing charged then stopped and slowly began inching to the side.

He felt like he was being herded somewhere and he really didn't like that. With it's slow deliberate moves he couldn't take his eyes off of it for a second. If he did then it would have him and it would be game over.

Suddenly his boot heel hit air and he knew what it had been doing. It had been herding him to a pit that was to the side of the entrance. A long dark drop he only noticed in passing as an obstical to avoid, and now he was being pushed right to it.

"Oh so that's your tactic, well it's not going to work on me!" he shouted at it.

The things grin was evil as it suddenly pounced aiming to knock him into the pit as if to say "Frankly buddy it just DID."

He didn't move, he waited till the very last moment possible and grabbed at the things face before kicking off of it. Letting it use it's own momentum to rush right into the pit. It slowed enough that it looked like it would be able to turn and grab the edge. Kicking off of it he pulled his guns and opened fire on the gem, with both wailing on the creature at close range it quickly cracked and shattered.

The creature screamed and swiped out with a paw trying to catch him and drag him with it as its parts began to turn to dust and tumble into the blackness of the pit behind it.

Dante stumbled back the thing catching his shirt. It ripped but he held firm on the ground as the creature's dying wails faded and only the sound of falling rock could be heard.

He leaned over his palms on his knees and guns still pointed out "Dammit!" he cursed looking down at the torn shirt "This is just my week for shirts! But.. SHIT! Even the HOMELESS get to keep their shirts!" turning he put his guns away and managed to take off the shirt. He used the scraps to make sure his head still wasn't bleeding. It wasn't, but he still had a small mess to clean up.

This all had really better be worth it in the end.

Chibi Intermission 1

Chibi Dante (here on out called "CD") with his shirt all torn up. "Aw man! This sucks! Oh well, what can I say? You just can't conceal perfection!" poses and looks as macho as a chibi can.

In pops the chibi hordes of hell. (From here on out called CHH, since Chibi Demons would be CD too and that get's confusing) "RAAARG!"

CD blinks as he finds someone mysteriously has painted a bulls-eye on his naked chest "What? Hey what gives?" Looks at the demon horde "I Chibi Dante, the demon slayer AND the man who's just too sexy! Shall SLAY THEE!" he runs at them with little guns flaring "ARRRRRR!" Pauses thinks a moment "No that sounds too pirates-ish, um how about 'AHHHH!"

CHH "Sounds good either way"

CD "Cool! OK! HAVE AT THEE!" waves small electric covered blade around, looks like a tazer.

CHH have a target thanks to the bulls-eye and run at him in a huge mass, "RAAAARG!"

CD stops, blinks, has a blond moment and then suddenly points up at the sky "OMG! Like what's that behind you?"

CHH all stop and look behind them, when they turn back they find CD missing with only a picture painted on the ground of CD giving them the finger and saying 'bite me!'

CHH blinks at the symbol "..." all start prancing about angry like "RAAAAARG!"

CD is sittin' cool on a beach somewhere with various ladies giving him massage for different parts of the body, "Oh yea, this is so the life."

End Intermission 1


	5. chapter 5

Notes: Hey thanks for the support people, we really appreciate it! We're at the midway point of the story, there might be a couple more slow parts, we can't help it since there are a couple really difficult bits we have to work in to make the ending make any sense! As for the action, hopefully it will move along quickly. Writing a good fight isn't easy. Balancing the fun details with just giving the needed actions is difficult. After all what's more fun to read; Dante slashed and killed the bad guy -or- With red coat flying behind him Dante leapt down upon the demon horde slashing, with his sword leaving ghostly images of electricity in its path.

Disclaimer: As stated before, we don't own DMC, this is fan fic written because we feel like it, and enjoy throwing objects at Dante's head.

Definition of a Critic: Someone who thinks they have a right to tell others how to do something they can't do themselves.

Yes, and Chibi Dante (CD) will most definitely be making more appearances, why? Because we feel like it! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Chibi cast flipping off those who don't like them NYAH! We're here to stay! HAZZAR!

As another note, we have a new Beta! I'll be reloading older chaps where she's beta'ed them. Corrected errors added little snippets, most of which are funny as hell! Say hello to Swifthawk.

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Chapter 5

(Running out of lyric ideas, if anyone has a suggestion, you can find yourself featured in the chapter bar!)

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Dante followed the trail of demons. At first as he fought his way through the ruins he headed for the central tower. Tallest and most obvious place really. Demons had no imagination, it was either the highest edifice imaginable or the deepest dungeon, and since he hadn't found any stairs going down that left the tower as most likely for Ba'al to be at.

But oddly as he fought he found that the direction where demons went from usual fast, tough, and so very annoying; to suddenly becoming very easy. Let alone the fact that the bodies didn't disintegrate. Which made no real sense to him really. As far as he knew demons where creatures of spirit. Their 'bodies' they wore on this plain when interacting with human where simply husks. Things made up of elements. Such as sand with a bulk of the ones he was currently fighting. He ran into some that used water, those tended to be annoying really.

So what was different about those that were turned 'mortal'. As he sliced down another enemy entering into a small courtyard area he looked at it and thought a long moment since nothing else was currently attacking at the moment. Dark reddish blood, near solid like something dead a long time oozed out around the thing. Kneeling down he noticed it was disintegrating, but more like a very fast rot, still taking too bloody long in his opinion. It was like she knocked those spirits into their form more solidly, making that form something.. Closer to human.

As far as he knew that was something only possible for the higher more powerful demons to accomplish. Like his father. After all the husks that the lower demons used would have been useless in propagation with a human, all entertainment but nothing would have come of it without a proper form. A half-breed like himself would be impossible. Of course his father was considered odd in that he would even have considered something like that. Dante wasn't one to complain since he existed due to his father's whims.

Standing he looked around and found his fingers tightening around the grips of his guns. All around him where a dozen of the statue things like those that had been at the front gate. All faced in and all with eyes closed. No exit but the entrance he came in he backed up slowly. Two had been hard, a dozen? Suicide. He was crazy sure, but he wasn't stupid. Something made him pause and stare. The statues where not moving, for the moment. He frowned and turned to the entrance, looked over his shoulder, nothing, with a sigh he cupped his hands around his mouth "BA'AL!" he shouted, just incase she could hear and give him a hint of which way to go since currently he was out of ideas.

"Dante?" incredulous he turned and found Ba'al hiding behind the head of one of the statues. She was staring at him with an expression likely to match his own.

"Only proves this ain't no video game" he muttered and shook his head, figured that Ba'al would be more than able to get herself out of whichever dungeon or tower they locked her into.

"Look out!" she backed away and he turned to see another of the dog headed things right next to him.

With a growing look of annoyance he put Ivory in the things face "Didn't I kill you already?" and he pulled the trigger. Looking behind he saw more flooding through the opening like a pack of rabid dogs.

"Over here! They can't climb!" Ba'al shouted and he ran towards her dashing up the wall and catching her hand just as he reached the edge of as far as he could go with such a short run behind the move. She leaned back to use her weight to keep him from falling and he grabbed the ledge with his other hand pulling himself up into the opening with her. Below the Anubis hit the wall and began screaming at losing their target. Dante chuckled and made a rude taunt at the creatures before firing off a few rounds watching them fall over. He didn't do too many, not close to the wall that was, because the bodies didn't disintegrate fast meant that the things could use themselves as a type of ladder to get at him and Ba'al, and being caught in a very small opening was not his idea of the best thing in the world.

"I hate those things" Ba'al muttered. And then jumped back as suddenly the ground shook. Dante felt like joining her as suddenly several of the statues moved from the wall. At first he thought they were fairly screwed, after all tiny hole was easy for one to stuff in a paw and crunch them both.

But they attacked the dog creatures instead.

"Huh" he said watching as Ba'al joined him "Looks like cats and dogs don't get along"

Ba'al gave him a wounded look for something THAT corny coming out of his mouth.

"Hey, common I've been walking, leather isn't comfortable when its wet. Can't expect me to come up with better after what I've been through"

He paused having finally gotten a good look at Ba'al. She wasn't looking that healthy, her skin was paler than he remembered and now her dyed hair was sporting wide chunks of pure white locks. Like someone came up with a reverse hair dye "My god Ba'al, is that you?" whatever else he was meaning to say got lost before he could remember it, "What happened?"

She shrugged looking down "I really don't remember a whole lot, there was a tower room, I think, and a man who kept talking. I got out of there but, why are you here?"

He gave her a look that clearly stated he thought that was the dumbest question in existence "Oh, besides saving your ass from the legions of hell, I came for a party where they dress everyone in black and blue and serve human kabob."

She snorted "Oh terribly sorry then, I forgot to bring the BBQ sauce"

He smirked at her "Oh don't worry about that, what runs in your veins is good enough for these non picky eaters." he hopped down to the area below since it seemed somewhat clear for the moment "Now come on, I think it's time to get out of here."

"No, actually I think it's time for you to get back up here," Ba'al said dryly pointing behind him.

He turned to see at least four dozen more of the dog like creatures and sighed exasperated "Oh give me a break" he muttered "Look guys I don't have a bone to throw you, but if you want I can take you to a place that serves huge bags of kibbles 'n bits."

There was hardly a pause before the creatures swarmed him, in the tight space Dante was going to have to move fast or he would become the new Devil Hunter Brand dog food.

Red and white and lots of iron, he thought randomly and smirked, he'd have to throw that one at Ba'al she'd likely get a kick out of the imagery. As it was he gave up and get himself back into the hole with Ba'al.

"Fancy meeting you here again" he said as he looked over the edge "Great. Just fucking peachy. Damned mutts." he watched the demons milling about trying to locate their prey again and then gaged the distance to the door, "Looks like we might have to make a dash for the door" he said.

Ba'al gave an exasperated sigh "I'm tired of running, I want a break"

He groaned with growing annoyance as he covered his face. "Look, when we get out of here you can take all the breaks you want, but right now I have a job to do and sitting here waiting isn't one of them. It is to keep an eye on you so let's go."

She crossed her arms beginning to look stubborn and he really didn't like that. Couldn't this girl be grateful for anything? "NO!" she sat back against the back wall glaring at him belligerently "I've been doing nothing but run for several days! I need a break! I haven't eaten, drank, or slept! I must say, lovely job you've done of protecting me, I've died TWICE." Ba'al herself was wondering what happened, one moment they were fairly friendly, and she was kinda happy to see him, and now suddenly they were yelling again.

But in a way, she felt he deserved it.

Dante twitched and felt his entire mentality shift. That last was a complete blow to his ego, yes in a way she was right, she did deserve a small rest, but no one was going to get away with hurting him with words.

He was better at shooting back. He looked over at her his face very cold and fury burning behind his pale eyes "Been doing nothing but run then? Poor baby, I'm honestly shocked, because it seemed to me that the only thing you are good at is doing _nothing_." Ba'als eyes began to grow wide at the attack. He wasn't finished leaning closer to make sure she couldn't get room to hit and just throw him down to the dogs he flashed her a smile that was all teeth "Turning things mortal and erecting mediocre barriers, I really haven't seen much to be impressed by and you, you are so concerned with pointing your finger at everyone else you never look in the mirror babe." He crossed his arms before him "You would have to have been the only one left they could have gone after, because once they saw how obnoxious you are they would have gone after someone more worthwhile!"

She blinked furiously, his words obviously got to her but she wasn't ready to just give in without a fight "Oh? If I'm so obnoxious why did you even bother coming back then? I Don't Need You" she enunciated the last clearly and with every ounce of anger coloring her voice.

"Oh you proved that alright, don't need me, you where the one laying dead in an alleyway when I found you!" he sat back on his heels and snorted darkly "No wonder you where living in the slums, it's the only place fitting enough for trash." he knew he was sneering now and Ba'al began to blink faster, but her jaw tightened and jutted forward slightly. In a blur he moved hand shooting forward and when he came back he held his coin twisting the double head piece between his fingers "For your information I came back for my coin. Mother certainly wouldn't have been pleased to be associated with people too stupid to see common sense."

He stood and turned looking down at the demons below, frankly he was about ready to just leave her to her own devices. There was no way that old man could pay him enough to keep this job now. He looked at the creatures below and considered his options. He really didn't have much left but to make use of his demonic form, he was going to leave this shit house.

Ba'al sat where she'd been cornered her head turned from Dante, she wasn't going to cry. Not in front of this jerk. She rather wished those cat statues would come back, they were at least useful.

About then she felt something shift. Not outside, but in herself. Putting out a hand Dante turned just in time to see the wall begin to glow slightly where she touched it.

And the ground began to shake once more "OH common! You've got to be kidding me! This stuff is FURNITURE!" he braced himself against the wall for the inevitable.

The second row of sideways facing carvings removed themselves from the walls and dropped themselves into the room below. Hardly bigger than the Anubis creatures the lion body male headed statues attacked and drove them off. Soon leaving nothing in the room worth worrying over.

Ba'al walked past him and then without giving him so much as a look she spoke, her words still crisp and angry "Well don't we have to leave then?"

Dante was floored, it wasn't often something could completely throw him for a loop. It seemed Ba'al wasn't completely useless though her attitude certainly was. He watched her as she clung to the side walls and practically ran on all fours to the exit. He blinked, her movements where very much like a human form of the cat statues, which was rather unnerving actually. She finally turned to face him at the exit after she looked around "Aren't you coming? You are s'pose to be my 'protector' right? At least that's what you keep insisting. I'm sure your precious mother coin wouldn't want to be near here any longer than she has to be, or near me." He almost didn't hear the last part. But silently he hopped down and went after her.

He snorted not about to let her have the last word "Well no arguments there, after all with your habit of attacking everyone, including innocents, who would want to be around you?"

"No one of course" she said not looking at him, her voice colored with real hurt and bitterness.

He was far from done. No one can say Dante doesn't pay back double for an injury, "Just keep it up ba'al, all that bitterness and rage, just keep throwing it out at everyone around you. Great way to make friends." he rubbed his chin as if analyzing the situation and remembering that conversation in his office "I mean you don't even like your own mother, waist your talents at a second rate job (that is of course saying you even HAVE talent to start with), live in a diseased rat palace, attack people with car keys, let alone your lack of common sense that would have made General Custard seem like the most level headed fellow in history."

She wasn't facing him, it seemed with every word he spoke she shrunk. It really struck home just how tiny and young she seemed. Which of course made him instantly regret everything he just said. Oh yea, big tough devil hunter, taking his frustrations out on a slip of a girl hardly half his size.

Bully.

"I.. Don't hate her" she said softly, it stopped him from saying anything at all "She.. Left me." every word seemed to be drug out of her with force. He could see her tiny shoulders shaking with a strain and knew if he could see her face she was staring at the ground with a blank eyed look that didn't see anything around her, "She said she would come back, she told me to wait right there, that she would be back. Then she left with that man in the long coat. She left with him. She never came back. I waited." she sounded younger, and Dante began to feel more uncomfortably like a large bully.

"She said wait, and I waited. I waited there this whole time, even though I could have gone somewhere better. I could have gotten a real job I didn't hate, I could have done lots of things, but I waited for her even though she won't come back. She left me there, to rot in that stink hole!"

He said nothing, for the moment there was nothing he could say really. In a way he knew that to have gotten her to talk about this he had to have done just what he did. She was too stubborn and proud. He still knew though that in the back of his mind, he pushed her too hard, and it wasn't to get this confession. He hadn't cared in the slightest about confessions and why she was the way she was. After a moment more of silence he finally spoke, his voice much softer and kinder than it was just a few minutes ago "Of course you waited, what else could you have done? But did you stop to consider, maybe she would have come back if she could have?"

"I use to think that, on nights when I've had to fight off advances of people I'm not interested in, who only see me as something child like to stick their sick fantasies onto, on nights when I was cold and hungry because I couldn't make enough to pay my bills." she looked at her hands and he noticed the whiter lines along her wrists, pale scars he never paid much attention to in the past "Then I realized it was no use thinking that, because even if she could have come back. Why would she? Why would she even want to come back to something so undersized, ugly and stupid as me? Unwanted, she didn't want me then when she left me, she wouldn't want me now." the bitterness was back, but in an almost dead quality, of someone who so completely and utterly hated herself.

The same kinds of tones he'd heard once or twice on people who were nearly ready to just end their own lives, but he had a feeling that Ba'al wasn't just ready.

She tried it.

Suddenly he felt himself get angry, but this time it was different. Suddenly he grabbed her wrists turning her and forcing her to face him "Are you completely blind or just so utterly ignorant that you can't see you are just using this as a crutch! Because it's complete and utter bullshit!"

"You are one of the most cleaver and beautiful girls I've ever met! You go through life taking care of yourself, but you've given up mentally! Convinced yourself that you are so worthless you won't let yourself do anything better. I look in your eyes and all I can see if someone so scared to face any truth but her own self delusion that you've caged yourself in. You are even using your own Mother as an excuse for the way you are." every word rang with a truth that couldn't be refuted.

So she didn't even try eyes overly bright with tears she refused to shed she just screamed at him fighting to get him to let go though he refused to "Oh? And what about you? This whole thing is just a band-aid to your ego isn't it? It sure must have hurt when they took your job right our from under your nose didn't it?" You wouldn't even be here if it wasn't for that fact!" he'd pretty much said so earlier, at the moment she couldn't' take everything he said. Not all at once, so she went back at him. Trying to drive him away from her and from that topic.

He knew this now and he wasn't going to be so easy to drive away this time "Hell yea, that is what I originally came here for, because it was my job, but I can at least admit it! You're so ducking screwed up you can't even face your own flaws!"

She managed to get one hand free of his grip and hit him in the chest, "I hate you" she said, softly her head down and lip trembling. She got her other hand free because he released her knowing she wasn't going to run now "I hate you!" she screamed and banged both her fists against him. She wanted things as they where, easier to understand, with a job she hated and no one forcing her to face things she didn't want to face. She hit him a few more times and then leaned her forehead against him shoulders shaking as she started to sob. He wrapped his arms around her tony form and leaned over her so that he could rest his cheek against her color chunked hair.

He knew what she was going through, more than anyone he knew. His arms tightened slightly as he felt a bit of moisture drip from his eye and fall into Ba'als hair. He raised one hand to gently pull her head closer as she continued to sob against him. Leaning on something stronger than herself for once.

She began to slow in her tears but before she could completely stop there was a shaking followed by a thunderous boom. Both separated and Dante pulled his guns Ba'al was up and clinging to a crumbled wall like some rather odd bug, she crawled up so that she could see over and then blinked. She glanced at Dante then back over the wall.

She was making him nervous "um," she sniffed and wiped at her red rimmed eyes "Was the way you got in over there" she was pointing in the direction he came from.

Dante really didn't like the sound of that "Yes. That's the way I came in, it's our way out."

"It just got blown to smithereens"

His eyes went wide and he jumped managing to get himself enough of a foothold to do another jump and get up to her vantage to see what she said was completely true. His expression quickly changed from shock to annoyance as his eyes narrowed "Well you wouldn't happen to know of another exit you just can't seem to remember very clearly do you?"

She shook her head at him "I haven't been able to get very far from the tower, every inch of this place is crawling with demons" she told him, which really didn't make the prospects of getting out in one piece any better. From their vantage he could see just how much of a maze the place really was, everything leading in towards the central set of tall towering buildings arranged like some ancient stone hedge.

"Just wonderful" he muttered his dark mood back in full "Demonic powers, enhanced swords, specially made hand guns, and all we really need in this place is a map, a compass, and a bag of kibbles." he checked his guns Ebony and Ivory before holster them back in their places then turned to look at Ba'al, "Well shall we find an exit?"

"Please" she really did look tired, and more so after her crying episode. He decided maybe it wouldn't be so bad to find a safe place and take a few minutes to rest awhile.

No sooner had he thought that turning to go around a corner he found himself hit by something rather solid and flung back with enough force to knock the wind out of him when he hit the nearest wall.

"What is this? I was told to pick up a little stray girl and now I find she'd managed to get herself a protector, oh this should be fun!" caped and cowled a creature came into view. Like the grim reaper crossed with a rabid jackal and blown up to 20 feet and given a rather large and intimidating weapon as well.

"Great this teaches me about being nice, only get's my ass kicked" he muttered looking up at the creature "Jackal, figures well isn't it a nice change of pace from the dog faced turds" he muttered sarcastically.

The jackal snorted disdainfully and with that long nose he could snort well, "Pitiful creatures they are, but they are useful enough as herd animals and fodder." Suddenly the creature struck the ground with it's weapon and it began to splinter.

Before either Ba'al or Dante could move they were both cast down into darkness.

Ba'al blinked realizing she was still, unfortunately, alive. Laying on rubble and finding herself face to snout with the jackal creature.

"You, I must take back alive" it said to her "But him, well I think I can take a few moments to play with a mere human." it turned back to Dante eyes glowing under the cowl and a sneer on its muzzle.

* * *

DA DA DUM! BWAHAHAHAHA! We will leave you hanging! Evil us! WOOHOO!

* * *

Chibi Dante theater

part 2

* * *

(Taken from earlier scene where Dante was thinking of Devil Hunter Brand Kibbles, red and white and full of iron.)

"Iron? I'll give them iron!" CD pulls his sword on the pack of puppy hordes of hell before him to wave over his head. "KE-YAAAA!" and suddenly he fell over as the sword was full size to his pint size form.

PHH all fall over laughing.

end for now!


End file.
